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October 23rd, 2008 | by Alive Mind Education | published in Forgiveness
There are crimes so unspeakably horrendous they seem unforgivable. And yet, some people do manage to forgive. Forgiveness: Stories for Our Time focuses on four individuals who have lived through events so painful and horrific they are unimaginable to most of us.
Lesley Parrott’s young daughter was stalked, raped and strangled. Anne Marie Hagan’s father was murdered by the next-door neighbour. Alan McBride’s wife and eight others were killed in an IRA bombing in Belfast. Reverend Julie Nicholson’s daughter was killed on the London underground in an al Queda bombing in 2004. Through heartfelt interviews, archival footage and images shot by acclaimed cinematographer John Walker, filmmaker Johanna Lunn tells the stories of these individuals as they absorb, cope with and attempt to move beyond brutal events in their lives.
In a world wracked by increasing violence and horror, Forgiveness: Stories for Our Time brings hope that there are other possibilities beyond blind revenge - and that in forgiving others we can set ourselves free. This program is an excellent resource for grief counseling groups, psychology courses and religion.
Forgiveness Product Information:
Grade Level: AP, College and University
Subjects: Religion
Copyright: © 2007 National Film board of Canada. All rights reserved.
Set: DVD Only
Total Running Time: 52 minutes
Educational Prices:
Educational with Public Performance Rights: $189.00Educational without Public Performance Rights: $89.00
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Video Librarian Review
March-April 2009, Volume 24 Issue 2
Forgiveness: Stories of Our Time
Rating: 3 out of 4 Stars - Recommended!
Filmmaker Johanna Lunn’s documentary Forgiveness tells the storis of four individuals who suffered enormous personal losses but worked hard to overcome their grief and rage, ultimately forgiving those responsible for their pain. Toronto woman Lesley Parrott’s young daughter was raped and brutally murdered (but Parrott’s opposition to the death penalty remains unshaken); Anglican vicar Julie Nicholson’s daughter was killed on the London underground subway during the al Qaeda bombing in 2005; Newfoundland woman Anne Marie Hagan’s father was murdered by a schizophrenic neighbor (a young man he’d known for years and treated as a son); and Belfast man Alan McBride’s wife was killed in an IRA bombing (McBride joined a protest group as a means of coping with his anger). Forgiveness combines home movies, stills, and archival footage to provide background for the interviews with the four principals, who reflect on their experiences. A moving film about human tragedy, Forgiveness illustrates the immense struggle required to relinquish the desire for revenge, but also strikes a hopeful note about the possibility of coping with terrible events in our lives. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)
How can forgiveness occur in the face of unspeakable acts of horror? The stories of this film, told by the survivors, attest to the place of forgiveness even after the most horrible of crimes.
The main part of this film consists of these survivors relating their stories directly to the camera. A Canadian mother tells how her daughter was raped and strangled. A husband tells how his wife was killed by a bomb blast perpetrated by the IRA in Ireland. A mother relates the story of her daughter who was killed by an al Qaida bombing of a subway in London. A daughter tells of her father’s death at the hands of a schizophrenic neighbor in Newfoundland.
They speak of the facts of the crimes, and they talk candidly of their overwhelming anger. And then they speak of forgiveness: not a shallow forgiveness of “It’s okay,” but a forgiveness that allows them to move forward.
Scenes shot in modern day show the survivors walking through their towns. Still photos of the deceased put faces with the sad stories. Despite the subject matter, the director has fashioned a film that is longer on hope than on depression. Each of these survivors had a moment where he or she found a new place, one of forgiveness and reconciliation, and this is what comes through clearly in the film.
While the subject matter may seem grisly to some—and there are scenes that may be too graphic for the squeamish—this film would be an interesting springboard for discussion for religious studies and criminal justice classes, as well as other interested adult groups.
Forgiveness takes the viewer inside the lives of those who some may argue deserve to nurse their anger, but who have found a way instead to set themselves free.